Ole Miss has launched a brand-new facilities fundraising campaign, committed unprecedented money for the contract of record-setting head coach Lane Kiffin – and now, through public records requests from the Jackson (Miss.) Clarion Ledger, the school’s equally unprecedented investment into Kiffin’s assistant coaches is known.
Seeing his staff heavily poached on the heels of the Rebels’ first-ever 10-win regular season, and subsequent Sugar Bowl berth, Kiffin had to hire new offensive, defensive and special teams coordinators, among other on-field assistants, as well as land new general manager Austin Thomas and new strength coach Nick Savage.
When Kiffin agreed to his new pact with Ole Miss last December, worth an average of almost $7.5 million annually plus bonuses/incentives, the deal also stipulated that Kiffin be given at least $3.5 million in staff salary pool – and guaranteed moving forward that Kiffin would assemble his staff with a salary base guaranteed to be in the top half (seven) teams of the Southeastern Conference.
New offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr., who replaced Jeff Lebby after Lebby joined Brent Venables’ Oklahoma staff, commanded an $800,000 salary for year 1 and negotiated a guaranteed $25,000 for Year 2.
Additionally, new Rebels’ running backs coach Marquel Blackwell earned a two-year deal worth a guaranteed $825,000 in base salary.
Heading up Ole Miss football’s strength program, Savage agreed to terms of $375,000 in Year 1 and $500,000 in the second year of his deal.
Co-defensive coordinator Chris Partridge essentially doubled his salary; he will make between $1.2 and $1.3 million the next two years on his deal. Wideouts coach Derrick Nix was bumped from $450,000 to $500,000 for the coming year, with an additional $25,000 guaranteed for 2023.
Though not all salaries have been fully released for the Rebels’ new staff, the known figures at this time represent a more than $11 million commitment to the Ole Miss football staff for the 2022 season.